As they say, records are meant to be broken.
Filipino cager Leo Avenido’s years-long reign as the ASEAN Basketball League’s all-time leading scorer saw its end this 2018, as Chong Son Kung Fu Basketball Club’s World Import Justin Howard has taken over the throne.
A five-year ABL vet who has seen action for Saigon Heat, Indonesia Warriors, Singapore Slingers, and SportsRev Thailand Slammers in the past, Howard broke the record on Saturday when Kung Fu faced CLS Knights Indonesia.
Coming into the match with 1,622 career points to his name, the American’s breakaway two-handed dunk approaching the midway mark of the second frame was the shot that exceeded Avenido’s 1,627 points.
The 6-foot-11 Howard finished the game with 19 points along with 19 rebounds, and now has 1,641 career points. It was a double celebration for him, as Chong Son reigned victorious, 86-83, for an immaculate 4-0 win-loss card.
Avenido had long been the regional pro league’s all-time leader, as he had started his ABL campaign in 2009, the league’s inaugural run. The six-foot-two guard, then around 31 years old, debuted with the Brunei Barracudas.
After his run with the now-defunct Barracudas, Avenido then became a fixture in the league, having had stints with Saigon, the Singapore Slingers, the Bangkok Cobras, and Philippine contingent San Miguel Beermen.
It was with the Beermen where Avenido found glory in the ABL. He became the league’s Most Valuable Player in 2012, and in 2013, he helped steer SMB en route to the championship at the expense of the Indonesia Warriors.
Due to his significant contributions to the ABL, Avenido, now nearing 40 years of age, was honored by the league as the first-ever recipient of the ABL Lifetime Achievement Award last October 2017, a month prior to this season’s opener.
